Baseball is the best sport in the world, according to a lot of sources that are named Matty Wheelz and write on this website. And with that title of being the best sport, there comes a whole lot of attention, and with that comes movies.
There are a seemingly endless amount of baseball movies out there for our consumption and some of them are timeless classics that have transcended generations and kept families entertained for decades. Some of them are dramatic and tell real-life stories that focus on real-life issues. Others are strictly comedic and over-exaggerate certain characters to perpetuate the insanely unrealistic plot. But, in both of these cases, it works, and it works because they use baseball as the median for the overlying message.
There are so many classics that are loved and hated by many. There are so many opinions to consider, hear out and formulate when thinking about this genre of film. I, personally, love the movies that specifically highlight the beauty of the game and emphasize how important it could be in people’s lives, ranging from players to managers to even fans. I love discussing this topic with friends and family and would love to discuss more with readers of the blog. So I will get this list going and share my Top 10 baseball movies, provide my thoughts on them and do my best to avoid spoilers:
10. The Natural
The Natural is such a pure baseball movie. It is arguably the purest baseball movie on this list, alongside Field of Dreams. This is yet another feel-good movie that uses the beautiful sport of baseball to balance a tragic story off the field. The story is all about Roy Hobbs, who was once a super prospect and had high hopes of dominating the big leagues.
On his way to a tryout with the Cubs, he was encountered by a woman on the train. She was seemingly interested in him and asked him what his primary goal was in the big leagues. He answered that he wanted to be the best player in the world, and she did not take kindly to that answer. She was hyper-focused on hating solid and young athletes and she felt that he wanted to play the sport for all the wrong reasons. So she shot him. She shot him and ruined his baseball career before it could even start.
The movie tells the story of his life after this and flashes forward 16 years to when he is given a chance to return to baseball. While dealing with all the ins and outs of joining a major league team as a 35-year old rookie and the player/manager interactions that come with it, he quickly became one of the best players in the league. In an unlikely narrative, Roy Hobbs takes over the sport and shows the world his natural talent. This is yet another baseball movie that focuses on a greedy owner with bad intentions for their own team. As someone who grew up watching the Mets under the Wilpons, these types of stories hit me hard.
All jokes aside, this movie is another must-see. The end scene alone will give you all the feels. It will fully show you how amazing this sport can be and how some of the best moments could be centered around it. Roy Hobbs is one of the most likable characters ever and if you have never seen this one, that should probably change.
9. The Hill
This movie is as underrated as they come. I do not think I have ever met anyone else who knows this movie and that is a shame. It needs more love and attention because it is just such a thoroughly enjoyable movie to watch. It tells the story of Rickey Hill, who loved baseball and everything that came with it. He loved playing it. He loved watching it. He loved listening to it. But there were two major obstacles in his way. First off, he had a degenerative disease in his spine that forced him to wear leg braces throughout his childhood. Secondly, his dad, played by Dennis Quaid, was a devout pastor of a local church and he hated the idea of Rickey playing baseball. He hated it because he worried greatly about his physical condition and he did not want his son to be doomed for disappointment and heartbreak.
Rickey never let it stop him though as he insisted on playing the game anyway. His dad wished for him to go down a safer path in life and one in which his back would not be subjected to such physicality, and it angered him that Rickey insisted on playing. With that said, he NEVER went to see his son play baseball. This movie is all about his journey of playing baseball, dealing with his condition and balancing his love for the game with the love for his father. It is a damn near perfect baseball movie and an emotional one at that. Again, no spoilers in this blog, but please watch this if you have any interest in the sport at all. Rickey Hill is the face of determination, grit and hard work.
8. Fever Pitch
The 2004 Red Sox are widely regarded as one of the most polarizing and incredible sports teams ever, and there is a great deal of context that supports this. This movie, while fictional, revolves around this insane season, and a specific diehard fan who must suddenly balance a love life with his fandom. Starring Jimmy Fallon (Ben) and Drew Barrymore (Lindsey), Fever Pitch shows the importance of sharing similar interests with your romantic partner.
Lindsey and Ben have a new relationship that is beyond thriving until baseball season starts. She quickly realizes that Ben is more than just a normal Red Sox fan. He is obsessed with the team. She finds it sweet at first as she tries to understand his love for the sport, but soon feels like he is putting the team over her interests. This starts to hurt the nature of their relationship and this obviously drives the plot of the movie as Ben needs to re-focus on his priorities and choose between Lindsey and the Red Sox. It is a Rom-Com, and there is no denying that, but it is different from the typical movies you see within that genre. The love interests are clearly Ben and Lindsey, but the side story of Ben’s love for his sports team can add a super relatable layer to the movie for the audience.
This is very simply a feel-good movie for all fans of the game and honestly, for anyone else who simply enjoys a good story. You start to really love these two characters and openly root for them to make certain decisions. Lastly, when I say all fans of the game would enjoy this movie, I really meant to say “Nearly all.” If you are a Yankees fan, you may need to skip this one. For the sake of your mental health, consider looking elsewhere. If you are able to separate Yankee fandom from cinema, however, you are back in play.
7. 42
Every fan of the game should watch this movie. It is one of the most accurate depictions of a single player you will ever see. Considering the accuracy of everything in the film, it is even more jaw-dropping to see how Jackie Robinson was treated in the early stages of his illustrious career. The hate he received solely because of the color of his skin was disgusting and this movie specifically highlights former Philadelphia manager, Ben Chapman, as the worst offender.
The scene with Chapman literally sends chills down my spine and it blows my mind that this was actually occurring on the field of a professional game. After researching on my own, I learned that this whole scene was true, precisely depicted in the movie and possibly even worse in real life, which is alarming. Jackie was handpicked by Branch Rickey to be the face of this whole experiment in which the color barrier was shattered in the MLB, and this experience with Chapman illustrates why that was the case. He had the toughest skin of anyone in the league.
He dealt with hatred in every city he visited and against every team he played. He even dealt with it in his own locker room. This movie tells that story and Chadwick Boseman plays the role so masterfully. It spotlights the true grit and toughness of Jackie, the sweet and well-intentioned nature of Branch Rickey, the incredible level of support and loyalty of his wife, Rachel, and the kindness and acceptance of Pee Wee Reese. I am trying to avoid spoilers for all these movies, but at the heart of this blog is a rankings list and this will always make an appearance towards the top of mine.
6. Moneyball
This one is either beloved or hated by baseball fans. Many love how the story is told while others believe that important aspects were left out and some parts of the story were corny. Think what you want, but I love this movie. As a massive fan of the game, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and love what it stands for. Growing up in a big market like New York meant that I was always surrounded by legendary players and aggressive front offices who spend like crazy. This movie showed me the other side. It showed how Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) changed the sport forever by building a powerhouse without spending much money at all. Moneyball is the story of the 2002 Oakland Athletics who went 103-59 with a miniscule payroll of only $40 million.
The focus of the movie is in the front office. Billy Beane, the GM of the A’s, was strapped with a very tight budget and needed to get creative if he wanted to compete with other AL teams. Beane hired Peter Brand (Jonah Hill) to help him in his scouting/recruitment efforts, and he helped him change his approach to this process. Scouts at this time were more focused on a player’s look and energy than their deeper metrics. They would have likely believed that a 6’4 player with a .300 OBP would be better than a 5’7 player with a .400 OBP. It is crazy that this is actually how kids were scouted back then. Beane and Brand began to systematically outsmart other teams as they found immense value at minimum cost across the board and built a championship-caliber roster.
The story focuses on a lot of smaller players like Scott Hatteberg, Mark Ellis and Chad Bradford, who were all impressive acquisitions. However, this is where some of the criticism comes into play. They do not really talk about Miguel Tejada, Barry Zito, Tim Hudson, or Eric Chavez much in the movie. This is important to know because in real life, Tejada won MVP that year, Zito won Cy Young, Hudson pitched to a sub-3 ERA and Eric Chavez clubbed out 34 homers en route to a Gold Glove/Silver Slugger winning season. These are very notable performances to glaze over, but I believe they did this to focus more on the impactful players they found in the bargain bin to fully convey the message. In either way, it changed the way front offices think and act and it forever shifted the landscape of scouting. This movie also gives us one of the best quotes ever in “How can you not be romantic about baseball?” which prompts any fan of the game to take a step back and admire the natural beauty of the game amidst all the analytics and contract negotiations that dominate the sport.
5. Rookie of the Year
This movie is another incredible one. The plot is very similar to Angels in the Outfield, but even more extreme as it goes a step further in having a young kid actually pitch for a major league team. I compare this to Angels in the Outfield in the most genuine way ever as I love both of these movies equally. They are both very fun movies that tell awesome stories.
Henry Rowengartner is a name you should know and love. He stole the nation’s heart back in 1993 when he slipped and broke his arm. His arm healed terribly but also amazingly as he discovered super arm strength when his cast was removed. He was not a great baseball player before the injury, but afterwards he was like prime Vladimir Guerrero. He tossed a home run ball from the outfield bleachers in Wrigley all the way to the catcher. A desperate owner saw this and decided to make a spectacle of it by finding Henry and signing him to a major league contract.
This is literally the dream scenario of any young baseball fan, and it played such a big role in my childhood as a growing fan of the game. With the leadership of Chet “Rocket” Steadman, Henry becomes a dominant force for the Cubs pitching staff and turns their lost season around as they push for the pennant. It is also a genuinely hilarious movie thanks to Daniel Stern’s iconic clumsiness and bizarre behavior and John Candy’s electric commentary up in the TV booth. It is still a top-notch film, and I highly recommend it to baseball fans of all ages. It is also home to the greatest quote in movie history: “Ohhhh Funky Butt Lovin!”
The league should retire Henry Rowengartner’s number and that is all I have to say.
4. Major League
This is another classic story about a team of underdogs, eccentric players and a crazy manager who are forced to play under an evil and manipulative owner. It is like Angels in the Outfield, but geared more for adults. There are so many likable characters in this movie, including Willie Mays Hayes (Wesley Snipes), Ricky “Wild Thing” Vaughn (Charlie Sheen), Jake Taylor (Tom Berenger) and of course, Pedro Cerrano (Dennis Haysbert).
It is all about the Cleveland Indians and their new owner who has big plans for the franchise and wants to move them to Miami. However, the team can not move without justifiably bad ticket sales on record to prove that the team is no longer wanted in Cleveland, and in order to achieve this, the owner tries to assemble the worst team ever. Miraculously, the team starts to gel into one cohesive unit and starts to play incredibly well as these no-names quickly become stars to make the owner look horrible.
It is a classic underdog story and a must-watch for all baseball fans. It is hilarious, heart-warming and just plain fun to watch. I still quote this movie often with my family and I do not think that will ever stop for the rest of our lives. From Ricky Vaughn’s iconic closer entrance, that may have had a massive influence on the actual real-life sport, to Willie Mays Hayes running sprints in his pajamas and Pedro Cerrano dedicating his life and career to Jobu, Major League is loaded with some of the most popular scenes in baseball-movie history. It was, is, and always will be a legendary film.
3. Angels in the Outfield
What a movie. If you want a movie that captures the childhood nostalgia of moving all ends of the Earth to watch and play baseball, watch this one. If you want a movie that perfectly depicts what it is like to be a diehard fan of a baseball team through the lowest of lows and the highest of the highs, watch this one. If you want a movie that highlights the lighthearted superstitions that players and coaches deal with, no matter how ridiculous they may be, watch this one. And lastly, if you want a movie that will make you love and root for a group of characters so much, it could bring a tear to your eye, watch this one.
Watch. This. Movie.
It is just so good and the cast is absolutely loaded. A young Matthew McConaughey is a mere afterthought in this film as other stars like Danny Glover, Christopher Lloyd, Tony Danza and Joseph Gordon-Levitt steal the show. It all centers around the latter, however, who is the main kid, Roger, in the film and is one of the most likable characters you could ever watch.
Essentially it boils down to this. Roger lives in a foster home with the bird lady from Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. He also has a dad and his dad is an absolute scumbag who wants nothing to do with him. He knows that Roger is a diehard Angels fan, but he also knows they are the worst team in the league. He promises that he will come back and be his dad if the Angels win the pennant. In the most heartbreaking scene ever, he wishes upon a shooting star that the Angels can win the pennant and not just because he loves the Angels, but because he wants his dad. The Angels then get boosted by literal Angels who propel them to victory and only Roger can see them. The manager of the team, Danny Glover, catches word of this and uses Roger as his lucky charm during the course of a miraculous turnaround. This leads to incredibly cool scenes and equally tear-jerking scenes too.
I tried to sum as much up as possible while avoiding spoilers. Just watch this one if you have not already.
2. The Sandlot
No other movie on this planet ignites childhood nostalgia quite like this one. Another all-time classic for me, The Sandlot has an unbelievably likable and relatable cast of characters that everyone can appreciate. We all had a kid in our neighborhood like Benny the Jet Rodriguez, the human Pablo Sanchez, who was the best athlete in anything you played. We all had a Squints, who was like a living baseball encyclopedia and oozed confidence in everything he did. I mean he landed Wendy Peffercorn. And I can confidently say that everyone knew a Ham Porter as a child because I was almost certainly the Ham Porter of my crew. The Great Hambino had his opponents in mental fits with his trash talking and then always backed it up at the dish with his immense power. The kid was a beast and represented all my fellow redheads proudly.
The scenes at the sandlot were obviously iconic as they fought long and hard to recover a lost Babe Ruth Signed baseball, but it’s all the other scenes that spark the aforementioned nostalgia. The pool day, the amusement park and even the brief block party scene are some of the most relatable scenes that bring you right back to your childhood. The latter scene also leads perfectly into the most amazing part of the movie…the night game. If you have not seen this movie or if you do not remember this scene, stop what you are doing and get on that immediately.
1. Field of Dreams
The best baseball movie of all time, in my opinion. Just a beautiful movie in which a man is called upon by a mysterious force to build a full baseball field where the crops of his struggling farm are. What happens after that is beyond magical and it is so cool to see old school baseball players emerge from the corn stalks and into the outfield.
The variety of storylines is so special here as we see the sad story of Moonlight Graham get resolved when he finally gets to step in the box on the magical field. We also see Shoeless Joe Jackson, the star of the Chicago “Black Sox”, receive some love and even some vindication for his role, or lack thereof, in the scandal that had him banned from baseball. The movie even helped spark a real-life debate about Shoeless Joe as more and more fans of the game pushed for his reinstatement. Side note, he FINALLY had his lifetime ban lifted in May of this year, nearly 73 years after his death, but it is a wonderful thing to see. Would love to see him rightfully inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame now.
The best narrative in this movie is the one centered around fatherhood. It seems as if the whole movie is based around Ray (Kevin Costner) raising his daughter and doing all that he can to give her the best childhood and prevent himself from making mistakes his Dad made. But as the film goes on, it becomes more apparent that Ray’s strained relationship with his father, when he was alive, has hurt him for a long period of time and caused him to feel much regret. This narrative has quite possibly one of the coolest resolutions in the history of film. It’s a twist of grand proportions and one that adds so much purpose, retroactively, to the entire movie. It is more than just my favorite baseball movie, it is a legitimate contender for one of my favorite movies, overall.
Well that is my top 10 list of baseball movies. There are so many more that I love and could have easily included, but decisions had to be made. I will certainly show some love to my honorable mentions who have once served some time on my top-10 list over the years.
Some of these classics include Mr. 3000, Little Big League, Benchwarmers, and Trouble with the Curve. I also know I may hear some comments about Bull Durham’s exclusion from the list, but I will confidently back up my decision. I do not really care much for that movie and I feel it gets way more hype and love than it should. I would probably watch Air Bud play baseball before watching that “classic.”
But hey, this is not a slam piece. This whole blog is an ode to my favorite sport and the incredible movies that were made as a tribute to it. From comedies to dramas, the range of these movies is incredible. Some share common themes, but guess what? It’s a great theme to share! It works! The people love underdog stories. The people love when greedy owners lose and bad players overperform. The people love baseball and I love these movies.